Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Shulgasser-Parker
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Surgeon finds redemption in book-based drama; violence.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
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Forgotten Love
What's the Story?
Dr. Wilczur (Lesek Lichota) is a 1930s Polish medical genius in FORGOTTEN LOVE. He cares not a bit about titles and honors. Despite his own wealth and recognition, his greatest joy is playing with his little girl Marysia and trying to please his unhappy wife. Professionally, he goes out of his way to help the poor and despite the disapproval of his prestige-conscious colleagues, he brings poor patients to their upper-crust clinic, offering to pay for their treatment himself. His good work gets him promoted over a far more ambitious doctor. Wilczur's life unravels when his wife leaves him for another man, taking their daughter with her to a remote rural location. The more ambitious doctor, pretending to help, sets Wilczur up for an attack so severe that even though no body is found, Wilczur is presumed dead. Jump 15 years ahead, and a scraggly Wilczur wanders the countryside with complete amnesia, searching for something -- he just can't quite remember what. He settles in a rural outpost and treats poor sick people. His grown daughter Marysia (Maria Kowalska), now orphaned by her mother and stepfather, is working nearby at a tavern to earn money for college. They become friends. She's wooed by the county aristocrat (Ignacy Liss) but his villainous mother interferes, resulting in a motorcycle accident that nearly kills Marysia. Her amnesiac father performs brain surgery and saves her, still unaware Marysia is his daughter. When the count's mother threatens to send Wilczur to jail for practicing without a license unless Marysia gives up her son, Marysia must make a choice.
Is It Any Good?
Forgotten Love aspires to epic importance and, at two hours and 20 minutes, it certainly qualifies based on running time. But a hokey premise underlies the dramatic sweep. Much of this story of a search for both a lost identity and a loved one will draw in an audience longing for romantic tragedy. But, that guilty pleasure aside, this is an absurd exercise in Polish magical realism. To fully buy in, we must believe that for the better part of 15 years, a man wanders about the countryside having no idea what his name is, where he came from, whether he has a family, or what he did with himself for the first 40 years of his life. He remembers absolutely nothing but the entire contents of his medical school education, how to wield a scalpel, how to treat a dislocated shoulder, how to perform, yes, brain surgery. This seems wildly, hilariously implausible.
And the fact that no one enjoying the benefits of Wilczur's treatments ever takes a moment to speculate that he might be an actual licensed physician also seems odd. A woman who abhors a dogged suitor suddenly changes her mind about him for no apparent reason. A woman steals surgical instruments, but a man confesses to taking them. Despite the movie's length, nothing develops naturally; it all just happens, just to move the plot along. The story is absurdly ridiculous, but good performances and the commitment of an all-in director make it kind of fun to watch.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the injustice done to Wilczur by his professional rival. Does it feel unsatisfying that the bad guy isn't punished? Why or why not?
How believable is it that a man with near-total amnesia lasting for 15 years would remember everything about how to be a doctor? Does it matter if this isn't believable?
How much of a role does coincidence play in the plot? Does that strengthen or weaken the film?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : September 27, 2023
- Cast : Leszek Lichota , Maria Kowalska , Ignacy Liss
- Director : Michal Gazda
- Studio : Netflix
- Genre : Drama
- Run time : 140 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- Last updated : September 27, 2023
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